Nicky and Stephen

We knew from the very start that we were meant to be. It was something very special and magical right from the very beginning. No, we didn't meet and date like most couples do. We found each other...

It was June 8, 1998. I was messing around on the computer and went to a chat room that my brother went to a lot. Stephen went there occasionally but hardly ever to the room that I went to. Out of all the people there we ended up talking to each other and found that we had a lot in common.

   For the next few nights we met online and chatted into the late hours of the night. And I mean late. Sometimes it was 4 or 5 in the morning. On that Friday (5 days after we met) we decided to talk on the phone. It was around 11 PM when we first got on the phone. Little did I know then that we would be spending a lot of time and close to a fortune on the phone. That first call should have clued me in. We talked and talked and talked. The sun was up and it was nearly 9 in the morning when we both reluctantly said good-bye.

   Good-bye's were hard for us. We could start saying bye and an hour later still be saying good-bye. The phone company and the mailman were my best friends back then. We sent cards and love letters to each other several times a week. Stephen would draw on the envelopes before sending them and I would get the most colorful and beautiful love letters. We still give each other cards and e-cards frequently. Not because it is a special occasion but because it is another way to say "I love you".

   We saved everything that we sent to each other. We are in the process now of making a collage out of all the cards we exchanged. It is amazing how well you can get to know a person this way. Just a few weeks into the relationship I felt like I really knew him and could hardly remember what it was like before we met.

   By August we were discussing where we wanted to live... in Virginia where I was or in Florida where he was. Well, that was not a hard one to decide. The lure of the sun and the beach won it hands down over snowy, icy winters and the hot, humid summers.

   We spent hours looking at houses online and actually found the house that we bought online. We were nothing but consistent. Found each other online and found our house online. Stephen moved into our house in October. It was January before I got there.

In December Stephen flew to Dulles Airport to see me. I can remember the butterflies that were in my stomach. We were both so much in love by then and we both knew that we were destined to be together.

   We spent Christmas together at my house. One of the first movies we saw together was "You've Got Mail". We both thought it was kind of goofy. Our getting together was a lot more interesting than the movie. I keep teasing Stephen that I am going to sell our story.

   A few days after Christmas we drove to Geneva, New York. It is located in the Finger Lake region. We spent three days at beautiful Belhurst Castle there. It is a great place for a honeymoon. The castle was built in 1885 and today is rumored to be haunted. We could believe that. The heating system is so old that it made all kinds of weird and spooky noises that you really only noticed at night. Our suite was on the top floor and had a beautiful circular staircase leading up to the turret. Late at night, I halfway expected to see a ghost appear.

   During that trip we sidetracked to Niagara Falls, Canada, and Rome. When in Rome, we went to Griffiss AFB where Stephen was born. (As a side note, this is the very spot where Woodstock 99 was held.)

   It was snowing when we left there and the temperature outside was only 9 degrees. Brrrr!!

   The day after we got back to Virginia we flew out to Las Vegas to celebrate New Years Eve. We saw Marilyn Manson play at The Joint in the Hard Rock Casino. It was a great concert. We also saw the Cirque du Soleil show, Mystere, at Treasure Island. Las Vegas was a blast.

   We stayed at the Monte Carlo. Took a taxi there from the airport and got ripped off. The driver asked our destination and when we told him he said "Monte Carlo, my ass!". Then he proceeded to take the long way there thinking we had loads of money to waste.

   We spent the next few days walking to every casino on the strip. Our poor feet were missing a couple of layers of skin by the time we left.

Back in Virginia we packed up the rest of my things (most had been taken to Florida already by United Movers) and headed south for Fort Lauderdale.

   I saw our new home on January 7, 1999. It is a great house. It is in a gated community only minutes from the beach. The back of the house looks out on a huge lake that has lots of fish.

   I love it here and our cat Biscuit does too. He loves the little lizards that run around every where.

   Life has been so good for us. We love each and every minute that we spend together. We love doing a lot of the same things. Travel, music and the movies are a few of the things we enjoy together.

On January 26, 2000, Stephen asked me to marry him. I was thrilled and of course, I said yes. Neither of us could imagine life without the other.

   Our wedding ceremony was simple but beautiful. The pastor spoke of what it meant to be in love... that love is patient, gentle, kind, joyous and peaceful. Long-suffering. Love does not know hate, anger or jealousy. Love is not proud or boastful. Love believes, hopes, bears and endures. Love never fails. Let your hopes and dreams be beautiful together. Endure forever walking, running, communicating, laughing and crying together, but best of all staying together 'til death do you part.

   We were pronounced husband and wife at 9:05 AM on the eighth of June, exactly two years after we first met. The pastor congratulated us and then asked me what my last name was. My maiden name was halfway out of my mouth before I realized that it was no longer my last name.

Fate brought us together. Love is going to keep us together . . .